by Diana Langdon
As enzymes are biological catalysts that promote the rate of reactions but are not themselves consumed in the reactions; they may be used repeatedly for as long as they remain active. However, in most of the processes, enzymes are mixed in a solution with substrates and cannot be economically recovered after the reaction and are generally wasted. Thus, there is an incentive to use enzymes in an immobilized or insolubilized form so that they may be retained in a biochemical reactor for further catalysis. This is done by Enzyme immobilization which may be defined as- "The process whereby the movement of enzymes, cells, organelles, etc. in space is completely or severely restricted usually resulting in a water-insoluble form of the enzyme." Immobilized enzymes are also sometimes referred to as sound, insolubilized, supported or matrix-linked enzymes.
This book is simple protocols for the immobilization of enzymes and cells that could be useful for application at industrial scale, novel protocols for immobilization in the future, and new chemical reactors able to overcome the limitations of a number of immobilized derivatives.
